The Henry L. Stimson Lectures on World Affairs and the The MacMillan Center present:
William R. Polk, foreign policy consultant, author, and professor of Middle Eastern studies: “America Confronts the Post-Imperial World: How, from Our Earliest Days, We Have Been Beset by Fear of Violence and Have Increasingly Put Our Faith in Military Force.”
William R. Polk is a veteran foreign policy consultant, author, and professor of Middle Eastern studies. President Kennedy appointed Polk to the State Department’s Policy Planning Council where he served during the Cuban Missile Crisis. He has written a number of books, including: Violent Politics: Insurgency and Terrorism; Neighbors and Strangers: The Fundamentals of Foreign Affairs; Understanding Iraq; Understanding Iran;Distant Thunder: Reflections on the Dangers of Our Times; and Humpty Dumpty: The Fate of Regime Change.